Refrigerator cabinet construction



March.10,1942.- R'F RD 2,275,482

REFRIGERATORGABINET CONSTRUCTION Filed March 17," 1938 and outer shell of the cabinet.

Patented Mar. 10,1942

REFRIGERATOR CABINET CONSTRUCTION Charles Russell Ford, Connersville, Ind., asaignor, by mesne assignments, to Re: Manufacturing Company, Inc., Connersville, Ind.,-a corporation of Indiana Application March 17, 1938, Serial No. 196,567

6 Claims.

This inventionrelates to refrigerator cabinet construction and has in view the provision of coacting structural members in a refrigerator body or cabinet which, among other advantages, permit elimination of woodwork, such, for example, as the wood frame at the front of the cabinet to which the food compartment liner was attached in cabinets of conventional design, said members also functioning to'rigidly brace the inner liner More specifically, the invention contemplates an all-steel" refrigerator cabinet embodying supporting means for the liner which also function to brace the outer shell and body parts gen.- erally and by the useof which'certain partsare eliminated and assembling of the respective parts.

inturned edge portion 9 terminating in a reversely-tumed marginal breaker-strip flange Ill.

is expedited, animportant feature in the modern.

volume production type of refrigerator body plant. The inventionalso contemplates an irnproved type of liner and breaker strip organization, as well as improvements in thestructure and assembling ofthe body parts generally.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a view, in front elevation of a refrigerator cabinet constructed in accordance with the features of the invention, the door being shown in open position; I

a Fig. 2 is a section taken substantially on the line 2-2, Fig.1;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged transverse sectional view taken through one side of the cabinet;

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 3 showing a modification in structure;

Fig. 5 is a detail fragmentary sectional view of the end portionof one of the liner supports, showing a slight modification in the structure of the latter; and,

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary transverse sectional view of the rear insulated wall of a refrigerator cabinet illustrating amethod of applying the back panel to the cabinet.

Referring to the drawing in detail, a refrigerator cabinet is generally indicated at C and has a food compartment 5 therein, in which are mounted a series of shelves 6/ The conventional evaporator 1 is shown in the center or the upper portion of the food compartment. The cabinet door is indicated at .D.

Referring tothe sectional views in Figs. 2 and 3, it will be noted that the cabinet is provided with an inner shell or liner 8 which is usually made of sheet metal having its interior surface enameled, the said linerbeing open at the front to provide a door opening and around this opening the edge portion of the liner is provided with an The cabinet illustrated is of that type wherein the liner side panels and back are made up as separate units, insulated and assembled with a top T fittedthereon. The opposite side portions of the cabinet are identical, each side comprising an outer shell ll of sheet metal which at its front edge terminates in an inturned flangei2'and at its-back edge terminates in a like flange l3.

To provide a support for the food compartment or liner} and to reinforce the parts of the cab-;

inet generally, a series of supporting members in the form of elongated brackets or strips I 4 are provided and are preferably, but not necessarily, formed in whole of iibrousor like mate--,

rial having a low ratio of heat conductivity. Each of these strips is shown extending trans versely from front to back with its front end adjacent the front edge of the outer shell i I and the flange l2 secured thereto as by rivets l5, and

its rear end adjacent the rear edge of the shell 7 II and the flange 83' of the latter riveted thereto as by rivet l6. The intermediateportion of the strip has projected therethrough a plurality of screws I], each of which also extends through the liner 8. Shelf studs II are threaded on the projecting ends of the screws I I and firmly clamp the strips and liner in assembled relation.

The back wall I! of the outer shell is preferably formedalong its marginal edge with an outward offset 20 adapted to overlap the adjacent edge of the shell II and is shown secured thereto by suitable means such as rivets 2i.

Suitable insulating material 22, which may be and preferably is in block form, is inserted between the outer shell of the cabinet and inner lineror food compartment. v

The construction'just described lends itself to the use of a snap-on breaker strip, indicated at 23, and having a longitudinal kerf or slot 24 formed in the one edge thereof and adapted to receive the flange Ill of the liner 8. The front edge of the breaker strip abuts snugly against the A suitable sealing strip 25 is provided around.

the front edge of the food compartment a seal between the latter and the door D.

In assembling the cabinet, each side panel comprising the liner H with its'insulation 22 and to effect I the strips l4 secured inplace at opposite ends thereof may be applied as a unit to the liner 8 with the screws i1 projecting through the latter. The shelf studs 18 are then applied and secured tightly in place,'thereby locking the paneland liner together while at the same time providing reinforced supports or shelf studs for the shelves 6'. The back wall l9 may then be secured to the liner H and the breaker strip 23 and seal 25 applied as shown.

The strips [4 may be as numerous as desired and of suitable width and thickness, but these strips are, preferably positioned transversely, front to back, and spaced to provide means for supporting the respective shelves 6, thereby effecting a saving over'installation's where individual or separate means .are used for this purpose.

The strips 14 are preferably made wholly of suitable material having low heat conductivity such as pressed fiber or the like. However, these strips may be made in part of metal as illustrated in Fig. 5, where thecentral or supporting part of the strip, indicated at 26, is formed of metal and is connected to aninsulating block 21, which abuts against the liner II and receives the inturned flange l3.

Fig. 4 illustrates how varying shapes of liner or food compartment supports may be utilized to accommodate difierent shaped cabinet side panels and food compartments, particularly where the panel does notlineup' front to back. The strip in this instance is indicated at Ma and has its opposite ends turned outwardly and secured toe. flange [3a formed on the back wall l9a. The Outershell Ila of the side panel is formed with inturned flangesat opposite edges which overlie the flanges l2 and'l3a and are riveted thereto. In this instance, separate strips or brackets 28 may be applied along the joint between the side panel and the back wall and secured thereto in a suitable manner. .The screws l1 and shelf studs l8 may be of the same identical type as those shown in the preceding figures.

The liner in this instance is provided with a head 28 adjacent its front edge terminating in an inset flange 30.

A conventional type of breaker strip 3| may be used in this instance and is shown secured in place through the mediu'mcf anchor blocks 32 and screws 33.

Fig. 6 shows a method of applying the back panel whereby a tight seal is assured. In this instance, one of the supporting brackets or strips for the liner 8 ,is indicated at band has its rear end secured to a flanged portion formed on the wall Nb of the outer shell. Theb'ack panel [9b is formed with a flange which mates with the flange of the shell to form an elongated channel 34. After the cabinet has been built up and insulated, the back panel is put in place and attached by suitable means, such as metal screws, to-the outer shell I lb, and a sealing'compound is then poured in the channel over the screw heads. A highly effective seal is thus provided for the back-of the cabinet.

The construction illustrated in Fig. 6 has the further advantage inthat the seal is at all times visible from the back of the cabinet so that it is possible simply by exterior inspection to know that the cabinet is sealed. The sealing compound is preferably of that type that can be or fastening means are rendered accessible for easy removal of the back panel.

The improved back panel sealing construction of Fig. 6 is of particular advantage-when using loose insulation between the inner .and outer walls of the cabinet, such for example as Balsam wool fiber ,and the-like. It .will be seen that when the back panel is removed, the insulation compartments between the inner and outer walls will be accessible at all points, rendering it comparatively easy to pack the loose insulation into said compartments. After the insulation operation is completed, it is only necessary, to lay in the back panel and then apply the securing means or screws and the sealing compound in channel 34. It will be noted that not only are the retaining means or screws covered by the sealing compound, but the joint'as well is also covered by the seal.

From the foregoing it be ,seen that substantially the entire body with the exception, of

course, of the insulation is comprised of sheet metal parts. While the base portion of the cabinet including the machinery compartment, is not shown herein, it will be understood that the. side panels may be extended and reinforced by suitable metal structure or shapes to provide a suitable supporting base. The liner-supporting members or brackets I serve to anchor the said liner to the front and back walls of the cabinet and in conjunction with the flanged edges of the outer shell provide the necessary rigidity to take up shocks incident to door opening and closing operations, there being no possibility of displacement of the food compartment liner with respect to the outer shell. While it is preferred to utilize shelf studs on the screws II, it will be understood that other types of fastening members may be adopted and particularly in instances where the shelves are supported in a manner such as not ,to require shelf studs.

The foregoing and other obvious changes in structure and design may be adopted without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a refrigerator cabinet, an inner liner defining a food compartment, an outer frame structurespaced from said inner liner with insulation material therebetween, a plurality of shell-reinforcing and liner-supporting brackets having their opposite ends connected to said frame structure and their intermediate portions connected to said liner, and shelf supporting members anchored to said brackets and projected through the liner to the interior of the food compartment.

-2. In a refrigerator cabinet having an inner liner defining a food compartment and an outer shell spaced from said inner liner with insulation therebetween, a plurality of shell-reinforcing and liner-supporting members in the form of elongated brackets with their opposite endsconnected to said outer shell and: their intermediate portions connected to the liner, and means pro-' jected through the liner to the interior of the food compartment securing said liner to said strips, said means having shelf-engaging members connected thereto and also serving to hold.

the parts in assembled relation.

3:. In a refrigerator cabinet, an inner liner definmg a food compartment with its front terminating in a door opening and an outer shell spacedfrom said liner with insulating material therebetween, said outer shell having front and 4. In a refrigerator cabinet, an inner liner defining a food compartment with its front terminating in a door opening and an outer shell spaced from said liner with insulating material,

therebetween, said outer shell having front and back inturned flanges, a plurality of 1iner-supporting members in the form of elongated strips each having its intermediate portion connected to the liner and its rear end connected to said back flange and its front end connected to said front flange adjacent said door opening, and screws inserted through said strips and liner, and shelf supporting studs mounted on said screws.

5. In a refrigerator cabinet having an inner liner defining a food compartment and an outer metallic shell spaced from said liner with insulation material therebetween, hanger brackets extending from front to backrwalls of the outer shell on opposite sides of the liner, means connecting the opposite ends of each of said brackets to said walls and whereby said brackets serve to reinforce the shell and render the latter more rigid, and means securing the intermediate portion of said brackets directly to the liner thereby suspending said liner from said brackets.

6. In a refrigerator cabinet, an inner liner defining a food compartment, an outer metallic shell spaced from said liner with insulation material therebetween, hanger brackets of poor heat conductivity extending from front to back wall of the outer shell on opposite sides of the liner, the outer shell being provided with inwardly projecting lips or fianges and the ends of said brackets being rigidly connected to said lips or flanges and whereby thebrackets serve to reinforce the shell and render the latter more rigid, and means securing the intermediate :portions of said brackets directly to said liner'and in supporting relation therewith thereby suspending the liner from and in spaced relation with re: spect to the outer shell.

CHARLES RUSSELL FORD. 

